1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a wheelchair and, more particularly, to a wheelchair constructed for outdoor recreational use and including wheels having wide rims and paddle shaped spokes, and a box shaped brace assembly between opposite frame members for locking the wheelchair in an expanded, operable mode. The box shaped brace assembly, when expanded, defines a storage area as well as a receiving port for a flotation device.
2. Description of the Related Art
Historically, wheelchairs were designed for use indoors, and particularly in medical institutions and homes having hard floor surfaces such as tile, pavement, concrete and the like. Through evolution of the development of the modern day wheelchair little attention was given to aesthetics and multi-terrain features. Consequently, most wheelchairs have institutional, unattractive design which is limited to use on flat, hard surfaces. Moreover, the conventional wheelchair evokes a negative stigma, especially in the perception of children and those people new to the use of a wheelchair. Additionally, the wheels on conventional wheelchairs are narrow and perform poorly on soft surfaces, such as grass, sand, mud, and the like, resulting in much inconvenience for wheelchair users when they wish to participate in outdoor activities.
There has been some development in the field of specialty wheelchairs that are designed for particular sporting activities. For instance, there are various wheelchairs particularly designed for sports such as wheelchair basketball and road racing. Others in the art have proposed oversized wheels for use on sand, grass, mud, and like terrain. While some of these all terrain wheelchairs have been found to be generally effective in traversing softer ground surfaces, they are usually large and bulky and not cosmetically pleasing. They often do not conform to internationally recognized wheelchair dimensions which are usually applied to the construction of wheelchair facilities such as ramps, access ways, lifts, and the like. For this reason, most "all terrain" wheelchairs in the art are not able to use public wheelchair facilities due to their enlarged size.